Women's World Cup: Day 4

The most notable result from this round of games was England holding Germany to a scoreless draw. It was a thoroughly disciplined performance by England, as the defence stifled the German attack while Kelly Smith, leading the line on her own, harried them at the other end. England allowed Germany very few clear chances at goal, and keeper Rachel Brown was equal to those they did have, including an excellent save late in the game.

Argentina were Germany's victims in their first match, but they put on a much better show against Japan -- possibly heartened by goalkeeper Romina Ferro replacing the unfortunate Vanina Correa. Japan thoroughly dominated in terms of both possession and shots but couldn't seem to score, while Argentina could only muster up one shot on target. The one and only goal came late in the game, Yuki Nagasato pouncing on a rebound in stoppage time to give Japan the win.

That leaves Germany and Japan level with four points atop Group A, although Germany have a far superior goal differential. England trail with two points, but they still have a chance to move on to the next round if they win their next game and beat Argentina by more goals than Japan did.

In Group B, the USA bounced back from the disappointment of their draw against North Korea to defeat Sweden 2-0. Once again it was Abby Wambach (in this case, her presence rather than her absence) who made all the difference as she scored both goals for the USA, from a coolly taken penalty in the first half and a super half-volley in the second.

North Korea also won their second match 2-0, beating Nigeria thanks to two goals in the first half from Kim Kyong Hwa and Ri Kum Suk. Both goals came from set-pieces, the first directly from a corner that looped into the net over keeper Precious Dede (best. name. EVER). The Koreans and the USA are tied and lead the group with four points each; they face Sweden and Nigeria, respectively, in their third game, with both teams knowing that a draw will be enough to see them through to the quarter-finals.

Group A
Argentina 0-1 Japan
England 0-0 Germany

Group B
Sweden 0-2 USA
Korea DPR 2-0 Nigeria

Women's World Cup: Day 1-2

Last summer in the men's World Cup, Germany v. Argentina was one of the best games of the tournament. Not so much with the women's version. This was a blowout. A score you'd usually associate more with, say, Germany v. San Marino. The Germans were helped by some terrible goalkeeping by Vanina Correa, who put the ball in her own net twice, as well as some equally atrocious defending by Argentina; the back line might as well have not even been there for all the good they were. I think they just kind of gave up after the first five goals or so. But even so, it takes a pretty good team to score eleven times in the space of 90 minutes, including hat tricks for both Birgit Prinz and Sandra Smisek. WIR SIND DEUTSCHLAND. WIR SCHTOMPEN ON DIE PUNY SOUTH AMERICANS MIT UNSERE BIG SCHTOMPY BOOTS.

Fortunately, the other matches so far have been much closer. In the other Group A match, Japan scored first with a free kick from Aya Miyama, before England equalized and then took the lead with two quick goals from Kelly Smith. But in injury time, Miyama scored from another free kick on the edge of the box, leaving both teams with a share of the points.

(I'm not going to do the bad hair awards for this tournament, because most of the players just have ponytails, which is boring. But I have to mention Japan's Eriko Arakawa, who has a truly spectacular fro. How do you even head the ball with that?)

Group B, meanwhile, is wide open, as both of those games also ended in a draw. North Korea surprised the favoured Americans with two goals in the space of five minutes, both scored with the USA down to 10 players while Abby Wambach was off having a nasty head wound stitched up. I'm not quite sure why that took the team up so much, though -- if you're going to be missing a player, wouldn't you want it to be a striker?

And finally, Nigeria's Cynthia Uwak scored a late equalizer to give her team a deserved point against Sweden, who'd taken the lead early in the second half with a goal from captain Victoria Svensson.


Group A
Germany 11-0 Argentina
Japan 2-2 England

Group B
USA 2-2 Korea DPR
Nigeria 1-1 Sweden

Women's World Cup Preview: Group A

GERMANY
Nickname: Die Nationalelf (nothing to do with Legolas; it means "the national XI")
Current world ranking: 2
Coach: Silvia Neid, who took over in 2005, having previously led the U-19 side to the title at the world championships in 2004. She was also a member of the German side that lost in the final in 1995.
How they qualified: Won their UEFA qualifying group with a flawless campaign, winning all eight games.
Past record: Reigning world and European champions, Germany are always one of the favourites for the title. Their worst performance was in 1999, when they only made it to the quarter-finals.
Other results: Six-time European champions; they were also bronze medalists at the 2004 Olympics.
Why they could win: Germany are a very talented and physically tough team. They cruised through qualifying, scoring 31 – with goals coming from all sorts of different players – and only conceded three, thanks to the strength of goalkeeper Silke Rottenburg and a solid defence in front of her.
Key players: Striker Birgit Prinz racked up eight goals in qualifying and is a two-time FIFA Women's World Player of the Year. Midfielder Renate Lingor is the team's linchpin; she has great vision and can be deadly from set pieces.
Predicted finish: Runners-up

ENGLAND
Nickname: Three Lions (or should that be the Three Lionesses?)
Current world ranking: 12
Coach: Hope Powell, appointed as the team's first-ever full-time coach (and also their first female coach) in 1998; she racked up 66 caps and 35 goals for England in her career.
How they qualified: Finished on top of a tough UEFA qualifying group that also included France and the Netherlands, with a 6-2-0 record.
Past record: Only one previous appearance at the World Cup, in 1995, when they were knocked out by Germany in the quarter-finals.
Other results: Not much to speak of, although they were semi-finalists at the European championships in 1995.
Why they could win: Women's football in England has made great strides in recent years, boosted by hosting the Euro 2005 tournament, but there have also been setbacks like the Charlton ladies' team being closed down due to lack of funding. They lost 1-0 to China in a recent World Cup warmup game, but they're still riding the high from their successful qualifying campaign, where they only gave up two goals.
Key players: Strikers Rachel Yankey and Kelly Smith, who both play for the quadruple-winning Arsenal ladies' team. Smith was the player of the tournament at the Four Nations Tournament in China last year.
Predicted finish: Quarter-finals

JAPAN
Nickname: Nadeshiko (the Japanese word for the wild pink carnation that has come to symbolise the country's ideal woman)
Current world ranking: 10
Coach: Hiroshi Ohashi, who took over in 2004.
How they qualified: Finished a disappointing fourth at the Asian championship in July 2006, but beat Mexico in a playoff to earn a spot at the World Cup.
Past record: Have qualified for every tournament, but their best result was reaching the quarter-finals in 1995.
Other results: Four-time runners-up at the AFC championship.
Why they could win: Japan has a well-balanced, hard-working team. The players support each other selflessly, and they're good at creating space and passing around opponents. However, they struggled in qualifying, and hard work alone won't be enough to get them through the tournament.
Key players: Midfielder Homare Sawa, Japan's all-time scoring leader, with 60 goals in 118 caps. This is her fourth consecutive World Cup, and she's got lots of experience, having made her first appearance in the Japanese women's league at age 12.
Predicted finish: First-round elimination

ARGENTINA
Nickname: Albicelestes
Current world ranking: 29
Coach: Carlos Borello, who's been in charge since 1998; he previously coached at San Martin de Burzaco in Buenos Aires.
How they qualified: Upset Brazil to win the South American qualifying tournament in November 2006.
Past record: Qualified for the first time in 2003, when they lost all three of their group games and finished with a goal difference of -14.
Other results: Three-time runners-up for the CONMEBOL title, before finally beating Brazil last year.
Why they could win: That victory over Brazil in the South American championship is a big point in their favour, but the fact is that – unlike the situation with the men's teams – Argentina are not nearly as strong as the Brazilians. The Argentines have good passing and ball-control skills, but have been let down by some wayward finishing.
Key players: Striker Maria Belen Potassa, who scored one of the key goals against Brazil and previously played with the U20s in 2006, is quick and has a good shot. Influential veterans include Marisa Perez and Rosana Gomez in midfield, and Romina Ferro in goal.
Predicted finish: First-round elimination

Group Predictions
Germany are the obvious favourites to win the group, and I think they can go all the way to the finals. England may be ranked below Japan, but I see them as a dark-horse candidate here. Unfortunately, the draw means that they'd probably end up facing the USA in the quarter-finals, which would likely spell an end to their campaign. Argentina may have beaten Brazil recently, but I don't think they're ready for the world stage yet.